"More Bad Economic News, Joined by Another Bad Legislative Proposals"

Washington's unemployment rate jumped to 7.1 percent last month, up from 6.4 percent. Seattle area unemployment reached 6.2 percent. Microsoft is cutting 1,400 jobs today on the way a workforce reduction of 5,000.

Seems like a strange time to be talking about dipping into the unemployment insurance trust fund for other purposes. That money may already be spoken for.

Naturally, this would be the day that the Legislature takes up the euphemistically named "labor neutrality" bill, aka the employer gag rule. (For that matter, on the Washington State Labor Council site it also flies under the flags of "worker privacy" or "free speech in the workplace."

Here's the legislation: HB 1528 and companion SB 5446. Last year this stuff was shelved, as noted in this blog post by then-TNT editorial page editor David Seago.

Almost as if they want to give topspin to the rising unemployment rate.